


Wellness Check

by yamskrdyne



Category: Persona 5, Persona 5 Royal, Persona Series
Genre: Comfort, Depression, Fluff and Angst, Or Is It?, Other, Therapy, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, gender neutral reader, no pronouns for reader. reader does not exist, platonic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:15:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24982192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yamskrdyne/pseuds/yamskrdyne
Summary: You fail to show up to a couple therapy sessions, so Takuto Maruki has taken it upon himself to see if you're okay. Might write more if I'm feeling up to it.
Relationships: Maruki Takuto/Reader
Comments: 2
Kudos: 34





	Wellness Check

**Author's Note:**

> It has been super long since I've written fanfiction, so please go easy on me if you decide to critique! I hope you enjoy this little self-indulgent piece!

Everything feels monotonous. Pointless. I feel like there’s a weight keeping me in bed and holding my eyes shut. I feel like I’m drowning in the ocean that is my comforter. It’s been like this for a few days now, and plates and laundry are starting to pile up around my room. I should really clean, shouldn’t I? My train of thoughts ends when I hear my phone buzz repetitively.

I don’t want to deal with a phone call right now… but I’ll pick it up anyways.

“Hello? (Y/N)?” Maruki’s voice rings out from the other side of the line. Suddenly I remember I was supposed to be seeing him today.

“Dr. Maruki… I’m sorry I couldn’t make it to today’s session. I’ll go next time, though. I promise.” I answer, sitting up in bed and staring at the wall. Talking to people on the phone usually made me want to pace around the room, but my body just wasn’t going to let that happen today.

“Are you sure? You didn’t go to the last one either… I’m worried about you.” His words make my heart jump. It should be normal for a counselor to care about his patient, right? Why did that get such a reaction out of me?

“I’m fine, just… a little tired. I woke up kind of late today.” I answer with no energy in my voice, and sure enough, he notices. Though, I should’ve expected that from him.

“You don’t sound fine. I’m your therapist. You can talk to me about these things, you know…” He trails off with a faint chuckle before clearing his throat. “But seriously. You were my only appointment today, so I don’t mind doing a home visit if you’re not feeling well enough to leave. I’ll be over in a few.”

“W-wait-” Aaaand the line went dead. Great. I haven’t showered in three days, and now my (admittedly attractive) Therapist that I’ve only been seeing for five weeks is coming to my personal trash-ridden hellhole. I knew this was a bad idea.

But, at least this gives me motivation to attempt to get my shit together a little. I get out of bed and trudge to the bathroom to conquer my first mountain: personal hygiene. All the scrubbing in the world wouldn’t help me feel clean after marinating in my own sweat and tears, so I end up taking quite a while. Right when I manage to get a clean set of clothes on, I hear a knock come from the front door of my apartment.

“Coming! Give me a moment!” I haphazardly gather the dirty clothes scattered around my room and shove them into my laundry basket as best I can, though it does overflow a little. I take the dirty dishes from my room to the sink as well, before finally opening the door to invite Maruki in. Wait, what am I doing? I technically don’t have to let him barge in on my personal space, so why-

“Are you going to step aside and let me in, or are you just going to stand there and stare at me…?” Maruki laughs sheepishly as I snap out of my trance and get out of the doorway.

“I’m sorry that it’s so messy… I didn’t really have the chance to clean up since you came on such short notice…” I sigh and close the door once he enters.

“No worries. You at least managed to clean yourself, which is a good start. I know how hard it can be to keep up menial chores when you’re not really in the best mental state.” Maruki gives a gentle, caring smile.

His face, his demeanor, his words… they’re all so kind, it makes me want to cry. I need to calm down, though… he’s just a therapist. I shouldn’t be catching feelings this easily. Holy hell, my standards are low. Or maybe he’s just the perfect man and I’m in denial? Surely this “kind therapist” persona must be an act. He’s probably disgusted with me.

We silently sit across from each other in the living room. How do I even talk about this? There’s no real reason for me to be ‘sad,’ per se, but something’s definitely wrong.

“I…don’t know what’s wrong with me. Everything was fine up until about a week ago.” I’m the first to break the awkward silence.

“You’re depressed.” He stated matter-of-factly.

“Well, yeah. I could figure that much out. But shouldn’t there be a reason for these types of feelings?” He must think I’m selfish for feeling this way even though my life is fairly pleasant.

“Not all factors in depression are external. Sometimes it can simply be caused by chemical imbalances in the brain. Tell me, have you ever felt this way before?” Maruki’s demeanor doesn’t even waver for a second.

This man is the exact opposite of what all my intrusive thoughts are telling me. I almost want to let all of my emotional walls down, like I should’ve done in the first place. Because he’s a therapist. Oh god, what am I even thinking? I swore the next time I’d open up to someone would be my autopsy, but I guess I was wrong.

“I have. But the other times, I had someone to look after me… Ugh. I’m an adult. I shouldn’t have to depend on other people anymore.” I groan and bury my face into my hands.

I hate being vulnerable, but it’s about time I finally seeked help. Even if he can’t physically fix the mess I’m living in, it feels surprisingly pleasant to talk to someone who’s so eager to accept my flaws. It’s nothing like the household I used to live in. Even if my needs were met, my upbringing was… less than desirable. 

“There’s no shame in asking for help as an adult. We all need someone to lean on sometimes, (Y/N).” Maruki was as earnest as ever, and seriously rocking the boat that is my unstable depressive episode. His kindness made me want to explode. “You said someone used to take care of you… in what way, exactly? What was your relationship with them?”

“The one who took care of me was my father. I used to live with him, when he was still alive… even though he would clean up after my messes and let me stay in bed whenever I felt like this, he would always belittle me for it.” I explained begrudgingly. I sort of had to force myself, and to my surprise I ended up letting a tear spill over. I quickly wiped it away, hoping he didn’t see it.

“...I see. You must have some mixed feelings about that, then… I can only imagine how difficult that is.” Maruki leans back into the chair, staring at me in deep thought. What could possibly be running through that head of his?

“Let me help you clean your apartment. Attempting to recover in an environment like this won’t do you any good.”

“Come again? You’re my therapist. That’s not exactly professional…”

“Then let’s be friends. I just can’t stand idly by when you clearly need more help than what I can give you as just a counselor.” He stands up suddenly with a look of fierce determination in his eyes.

“You’re… so weird.” I can’t help but crack the faintest of smiles at his eccentricity. “But fine… if that’s really what you think I need, I can’t just ignore the advice my counselor gives me.”

“Perfect! Let’s get cleaning, then. The sooner we get it done, the better. Where do you keep your cleaning supplies?” Maruki looks utterly thrilled. How is this man real? He’s seriously excited to clean some depressed freak’s house?

“Uh… in the bathroom. Here, I’ll show you.” I tried my best not to let my shock show on my face. Not that he would care either way, but… I think it might be worth it to open up just a little more.


End file.
